Major League Soccer, the New York Red Bulls and D.C. United decided late Wednesday to swap home dates for the clubs' upcoming playoff series, moving Saturday night's opener from Red Bull Arena to RFK Stadium and next week's decisive second leg (and possible overtime) north to the home of the lower-seeded Red Bulls.

With power at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J., not restored and mass transit throughout the New York City area shut down as a result of Hurricane Sandy, plans for a nationally televised playoff game on Saturday night were untenable.

"This was a tough decision but one we believe is much bigger than the sport of soccer," MLS commissioner Don Garber said on a Wednesday conference call. "This will have a competitive impact on D.C. and we understand that … we deeply appreciate their support."

The opening game now will be played Saturday at 8 p.m. ET. The Red Bulls' home match will be at 8 p.m. ET Nov. 7.

United finished second in the Eastern Conference standings, one point above the rival Red Bulls, thereby earning the right to be host for the second game of the home-and-home series on Nov. 7. If the teams remained level after 90 minutes at each venue, the overtime and penalty kick tiebreaker, if needed, would have taken place in the nation's capital. Now they would happen in New Jersey.

"These are extraordinary circumstances that we all face," D.C. president and CEO Kevin Payne said. "Our club worked very hard to try to earn home-field advantage in the playoffs and we are very proud that we achieved that but there are times when circumstances override competitive concerns and this is clearly one of those times."

Red Bulls GM Jérôme de Bontin said there was no structural damage to Red Bull Arena and that the field had been covered and was dry. But power, save that supplied by a few generators, had been out since the storm hit Monday night.

"I'm quite confident that by (Nov. 5) everything will be in order in the arena. The stadium is in perfect shape," De Bontin said.

Garber said that it is the league's "goal and intention to play the (second) game at Red Bull Arena on Wednesday (Nov. 7) … It's fair to say in the meantime we'll be looking throughout the New York-New Jersey area to see if there are alternative sites should Red Bull Arena not be available. But our intention is to play at Red Bull Arena and we hope to be able to do so."

The parties first discussed changing the schedule on Tuesday night — Garber said storm damage and accompanying communication difficulties prevented an earlier conversation.

The Philadelphia Union's PPL Park, just south of the city in Chester, Pa., was considered as a site for the first leg so D.C. could maintain its competitive advantage. But Garber said, "We just weren't able to make a decision that would finalize PPL Park in time."

No other alternative sites were mentioned in Wednesday's call.

Moving the series back by several days also wasn't an option, according to Garber, because of the Nov. 14 FIFA international date (on which the U.S. will play Russia) and the need to maintain two weeks between the conclusion of the semifinal series the weekend of Nov. 17-18 and the MLS Cup final on Dec. 1. The title game will be hosted by the participant with the higher regular season point total, requiring a buffer to resolve those logistics.

Payne said his club already was working on a "major public relations and advertising campaign" to notify fans of the switch and that refund requests will be accepted. About 10,000 tickets had been sold for next Wednesday's game, he added.

Garber said he had confidence that Payne and United would generate a good crowd on short notice, while D.C. coach Ben Olsen told The Washington Post, "There are real issues in New York and New Jersey. People are suffering. This seems to be the simplest solution."